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Blind People From the Truth: Puritanism blinded Bradstreet from the truth by making her not see the value of things on Earth. If these items on Earth are God's creations then Bradstreet has been blinded by her spiritual connection so much that she does not recognize these gifts given to her. Her strong focus on her personal relationship with God does not allow her to focus on the gifts that he has given her.

Show People the Truth: Religion showed Bradstreet the truth by allowing her to give a deeper focus and meaning to her life. She trusted in God to give her good outcomes and he rewarded her faith in him in many ways. Additionally, by recognizing that materials are not everything and that spirituality is also important; Bradstreet becomes a more level-headed person.

Faith and Religion come to shape American Lit:
Faith and religion have shaped American literature in many ways. The first non-native settlers to America had deeply Christian values and those same values have been passed along over time. People wrote about their faith in times of trouble and triumph which allowed for it to become apart of literary culture.

Role that it plays in General:

Religion and faith play a large role in people's lives. Bradstreet's actions were dictated by her belief in God and desire to go to Heaven. She believed that she had to work hard to glorify him in her life. If Bradstreet were not a Puritan she may have made other choices and focused her life on different areas.

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Purpose:

What is the purpose of your stanza?

What role does your stanza play within the context of the whole poem?

She uses this stanza to show the reader that she will serve God for the rest of her life. She included this to show her deep connection with God.

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Line -by- Line:

Go line by line (for your stanza) and discuss the meaning of each

Identify (as a group) which stance this particular line is supporting (opposing traditional Puritan views OR supporting traditional views)

For each line explain HOW the evidence/line supports this stance

Line 1: Bradstreet wants to give something to God who has helped her and listened to her cries for help. Her "Saviour" is god who saved her when he died on the cross. Bradstreet is supporting Puritan views because she calls God her saviour. This is shown through her word choice because she calls God her Saviour, which means that God is her number one protector, just like in Puritan beliefs.

Line 2: She is saying that God, through his own free will, died on the cross for her and the other Puritans. When he died on the cross with no obligation, he saved her from her past sin. This line is supporting Puritan beliefs because she trusts in God and knows that he died on the cross- a Puritan belief.

Line 3: Bradstreet says that she will serve God and be an example for his message. This could be part of a conversion narrative. This further proves her commitment to God and the fact that she wants to repay her debt to him. By expressing her commitment to the Lord she proves that she is a true Puritan.

Line 4: Bradstreet says that she will serve God for all of eternity. This proves her dedication and commitment to God. It additionally applies that for eternity she will be with him arguing that she is one of the elect. She is supporting Puritan beliefs by pledging her allegiance to God for her whole life and eternity.

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Diction:

Identify certain types of words and different connotations for these words.

How do these words impact the reader and overall purpose of your stanza?

She uses the word “Saviour” in the stanza, showing her appreciation for her religion (13). She also capitalized Eternity, conveying how important she thinks her future in Heaven is. When one reads the stanza, s/he knows that she has a deep connection with God and may believe that this could be a conversion narrative.

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How has faith and religion come to shape American lit:
Anne Bradstreet's poem conveys the unshakable trust and belief in God found in American literature connecting to the bible.

What role do faith and religion play in the lives of people in general?: Religion controlled Bradstreet's life and led her to worry about her status with God in being one of the elect. This causes her to seek him earnestly and continue to hope for his comfort and salvation.

How does religion blind people from the truth?:
Religion blinded Bradstreet from the truth by making her upset that she is not of one of elect. I don't personally believe that there is a such thing as an elect person. Additionally, even if you did, being upset over something you cannot control is somewhat foolish.
How can religion show people the truth?
Bradstreet is shown the truth through God. Her relationship with God gives her clarity and comfort knowing that she has someone reaching out for and helping her.

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The poem refers to God a savior because God died in the cross for her sins; thus saving her. Bradstreet supports this narrative in her writing by turning to God for comfort and for reassurance. The friendly relationship between Bradstreet and God is heavily explored along with their trust in one another. Bradstreet's works were praised for her trust in God which was very important in American culture at the time. Her education and relationship with God was heavily praised. In opposition to this we see Bradstreet's secrecy about her love for her husband over God. This guilt and these emotions were common as people battled to control themselves.

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God should be placed above everything else while Bradstreet arguably opposes this. She says "I sought him whom my soul did love/ with tears I sought him earnestly" If that him is another man than God then she is putting her feelings for him over her relationship with God. In Lines 5 and 6, Bradstreet feels guilt about her love which is shown by her crying. She also implies that her husband provides her with everything that she needs; implying that God's value to her is much lesser or that he is insignificant. Her husband is a distraction from her relationship with God, yet she idolizes her husband more than god himself.

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Anne confides in God due to her worries about being one of the elect. By the end of the story she pledges her whole life to him. She believes that God hears her cries and promises and that with his grace she will live a wonderful life on Heaven and Earth. Bradstreet states "My smarting wounds washt in his blood" representing the biblical communion and her faith in him. Additionally she says "With tears I sought him earnestly" implying that Bradstreet wants to live a life full of faith in God and that she trusts him to make these decisions for her.

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Anne Bradstreet's poem "The Author To Her Book" subtly opposes the views of Puritanism. In the text Anne expresses that she believes that her works come from her "feeble brain". According to Puritan beliefs, God would have created this brain for her so by her calling it bad she implies that she is not one of God's chosen people and that his creation was wrong. Additionally her emotions around the publishing of her poem implies that she was not ready for her controversial views to be fully released. Her guilt can be easily proven through these different ways.

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Bradstreet's fear of her work being published implies that her work is very flawed. She does not want her ideas that are slightly outside of the norm to be openly broadcasted in the colonies. She feels that she has to correct herself for her lack of faith and trust and for publishing works that go against the Puritanist stronghold at the time. This shows how powerful the religion was at the time and how it controlled all aspects of people's lives.

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Religion shaped "The Author to Her Book" by Anne Bradstreet. Her work can be seen as unfit for the eyes of God and for those around her who might see her flaws in being a 100 percent perfect Puritan.

Religion and faith: Bradstreet puts herself below God by using words such as "feeble".

Blinding people from the truth: Religion can blind people from the truth by making them believe that they are one of the "elect". This theory about religion caused mass hysteria and issues for the Puritans at the time. Bradstreet believes that her brain is "ill-formed" and "feeble" which implies that she does not believe that she is elect. Her ideas are seen as wrong in her head; implying that God is choosing everything for her.

Show them the truth: Religion can show people the truth by making them have faith in good. Bradstreet's writings allowed her to apologize to God for her creations. Her writing of literature could have prompted her to seek out God's truth because she believed that she had sinned.

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Bradstreet can be believed to have supported the conversion narrative and Puritanism through this work. You could make the argument that Bradstreet does not see herself as a good enough Puritan and that she wants to be more perfect. By saying that her books are "ill-formed offspring" you could say that she is trying to write perfectly for God. If she does not believe that her work is good enough to be worthy of God's value than she might believe that she will be punished for her failure.

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Figurative Meaning Opposing:
God punished Anne for her lack of belief in Puritanism by burning their house. Anne believes that all is meaningless and does not respect the gifts that God gave her. The quote "Adieu, adieu, all's vanity" proves that Anne believes that her home is meaningless. This can be seen as a rebuke to God's creation of the house.
Figurative Meaning Conversion Narrative:
Anne's faith in God and trust in him can be seen evidently throughout this text. She believes that God is her savior. The text writes "The world no longer let me love, my hope and treasure lies above". This implies that Bradstreet views god as her hope for good and that he is a "treasure". This implies that she has full faith in God despite this setback.
Connection to Time/Puritan Beliefs:
Puritanism was largely the only religious belief held in New America. Going against it meant that death was possible and that you would not be saved by God. Bradstreet re-iterates this by talking about her faith in God and how he is supreme. Her belief is in God and she puts her faith in him to lead her out of this troubling time. This would be the common reaction to an event like this.
2 Essential Questions Sentences
Blind People from the Truth: Puritanism can blind people from the truth by making them believe that ordinary events are entirely in God's control.
How can faith and religion reveal the truth to People?: Deep trust in faith and religion causes many to experience peace within themselves and to listen to the advice of Almighty God.